Guide · The process

How a mortgage application actually works

Eight stages, and at any moment you should know which one you are in. Most of the anxiety in buying a house comes from not knowing that.

Written by Craig Chavez8 minute readUK-wide

On this page

  1. The eight stages
  2. What you will be asked for
  3. Where the delay usually is
  4. How to make it go faster

The eight stages

  1. The first conversation

    Fifteen to thirty minutes. What you are trying to do, what you earn, what you owe, what your deposit is and what is on your credit file. At the end of it you should have a realistic budget and a clear yes, no or not yet. This costs nothing.

  2. Agreement in principle

    A lender's provisional confirmation that it would lend you roughly that amount, based on a credit check and the figures you have given. Usually same day, valid 60 to 90 days. It is not a guarantee, but no serious estate agent will take your offer without one. Most are done on a soft search, so it does not mark your file.

  3. Offer accepted on a property

    The estate agent will ask for proof of funds and your agreement in principle, then issue a memorandum of sale to both solicitors. Instruct your solicitor the same day. This is the single most common place to lose a week for no reason.

  4. The full mortgage application

    Now the real one. Identification, payslips or accounts, bank statements, deposit evidence and details of the property. We package it in the format that particular lender wants, which materially affects how fast it moves. Expect to spend an hour or two gathering documents.

  5. Valuation

    The lender values the property to make sure it is worth enough to secure the loan. Often automated and instant. Sometimes a physical inspection, which takes a week or two to book. This is not a survey and it is not for your benefit - arrange your own survey separately.

  6. Underwriting

    A human reads the case. They may come back with questions: an unusual transaction on a statement, a gap in employment, a name that does not match. Answering fully and quickly is everything here. This is where we earn the fee, because we answer most of it for you.

  7. Formal mortgage offer

    Issued to you and your solicitor, typically valid three to six months. From a complete application, two to four weeks is normal. At this point the mortgage is done and the rest is legal work.

  8. Exchange and completion

    Solicitors finish searches and enquiries, you sign, contracts are exchanged and a completion date is fixed. On completion day the lender releases the money, the solicitor pays the seller and you collect the keys. Exchange to completion is often one to two weeks, sometimes the same day.

What you will be asked for

Gather these before you apply and you will take a week out of the process. Photographs and PDFs are fine - nothing needs posting.

  • Photo identification. Passport or driving licence.
  • Proof of address. A recent utility bill or council tax statement.
  • Income if employed. Three months of payslips and your latest P60. If bonus or commission matters to the case, more.
  • Income if self-employed. Two to three years of SA302 tax calculations with matching tax year overviews, or company accounts and an accountant's certificate.
  • Bank statements. Three to six months for every current account you use.
  • Deposit evidence. Savings statements showing the money building up, or a signed gift letter from the person giving it.
  • Existing commitments. Loan and credit card statements, and any child maintenance arrangements.

Where the delay usually is

Almost never the mortgage. In our experience the order is:

  1. Local authority searches. Two to six weeks, and entirely outside anyone's control. Some councils are fast, some are not.
  2. Solicitor enquiries. One firm asks a question, the other takes ten days to answer. Repeat.
  3. Somebody else in the chain. You can be perfectly organised and still wait for a stranger four links away.
  4. A leasehold pack. If you are buying a flat, the management company has to produce information and can be extraordinarily slow. Ask the seller to order it on day one.
  5. Missing documents. The only one you control, which is why it is the one to get right.

How to make it go faster

  • Get your agreement in principle before you view, not after you offer.
  • Instruct a solicitor the day your offer is accepted. Pick one on your lender's panel.
  • Send every requested document the same day, in full. Half a document restarts the clock.
  • Do not take out new credit, change jobs or move money around in unusual ways during the process.
  • Reply to your solicitor and your broker even when the answer is that you have nothing to add. Silence gets read as a problem.

One habit that changes everything

Keep every document in one folder on your phone, named clearly, from the very first day. Clients who do this complete noticeably faster than clients who go hunting for a payslip every time somebody asks. It is not glamorous advice, but it is the most useful thing in this guide.

Start here

Want somebody to run this for you?

That is the job. We handle the lender, the underwriter and the chasing, and tell you exactly which stage you are in whenever you ask.

  • The first conversation is free
  • No credit check, no hard search
  • A reply within one working day

Prefer to talk now? Call 0333 339 7301 or email [email protected].

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